


lesson three.

by andnowforyaya



Series: blue moon pet house series [4]
Category: B.A.P, Monsta X (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dystopia, Dom/sub, M/M, Master/Pet, Multi, Prostitution
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-24
Updated: 2016-10-24
Packaged: 2018-08-24 10:07:34
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,341
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8368285
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/andnowforyaya/pseuds/andnowforyaya
Summary: Hoseok takes Kihyun and Minhyuk to the beach to meet a client. It feels like the world ends here, or maybe this is where it begins.





	

The train rocks on its tracks as it makes a sharp turn to hug the edge of the fallen city, its abandoned buildings overgrown by forest. Hoseok feels Kihyun’s fingers latch around Hoseok’s shirt where it is tucked into his pants, hears his sharp intake of breath, and shifts to loop an arm around Kihyun’s narrow shoulders, pulling him close. The train flattens out with a squeal of metal against metal, and Kihyun’s grip on his shirt loosens, though neither of them move away from each other.

Across from them, Minhyuk takes up two seats, napping, his head pillowed on one of Hoseok’s sweaters. Kihyun is understated today in jeans and a black shirt, his collar around his neck, the makeup dark around his eyes and his lips a muted pink. Minhyuk is almost the opposite, in white. Hoseok smiles at the image of a tiny Kihyun and Minhyuk on either shoulder, a devil and an angel.

“First time taking the train?” Hoseok murmurs to Kihyun, feeling Kihyun move against him until their hips are touching. Lately, he seems to be always touching Kihyun.

“No,” Kihyun says softly, “but it’s been a while.”

“Ever been to the beach?” Hoseok asks. The client they are meeting has a property on the beach, a rare mansion that sprawls across land and stretches out toward the sea. Tomorrow, he will be hosting a fundraiser there, and contracted the services of a few pet houses in Seoul to provide entertainment. He’d come by Blue Moon specifically and picked out Kihyun and Minhyuk, and it was decided Hoseok would accompany them.

“Once when I was young,” Kihyun answers. He puts his head on Hoseok’s shoulder, though he’s still looking out the window as the fallen city -- Old Seoul -- grows smaller in the distance. On either side of them, now, is forest, thick and dense. “With my mother’s House. It was beautiful.”

Kihyun’s lashes fan out over his cheeks. Hoseok tightens his arm around Kihyun’s shoulders so that he can fiddle with the d-ring in the middle of Kihyun’s collar with his hand, pulling on it slightly. Kihyun squirms against him, his eyelids fluttering shut as he settles into a more comfortable position pressed to Hoseok’s side.

Hoseok says, “It still is beautiful, Kihyunnie,” and counts the pet’s breaths until he falls asleep.

.

They arrive at the station a few hours later, the coast behind them and the city before. They take a moment to stare out across the ocean, at its distance and vast, beautiful emptiness. 

The client has sent a car for them. They pile into it with their minimal luggage, and the sun dips below the horizon on their way to the property. The sky is painted with orange and pink and purple, inky blue above, and Kihyun rolls the windows down, letting the salty breeze ruffle his hair, sticking his face out like a dog would. Hoseok, in the front seat, laughs and tells him to sit back down all the way, but this only encourages Minhyuk to do the same.

The driver eyes them both in the rearview mirror, hands steady on the wheel. “Don’t much listen to you, do they?” he says to Hoseok.

“When it matters,” Hoseok replies, and after a moment, the driver smiles.

.

“You’re late,” the client says with a wide smile across his face as he welcomes them into his home. The foyer is about the size of Blue Moon’s parlor, and brilliant in ivory and marble, a curved staircase rising from the floor to the second level, and an arched doorway leading into the interior of the house.

“Sorry, Himchan,” Hoseok says with a slight bow. “The train was slightly delayed.”

“Doesn’t matter,” Himchan says with a wave, ushering the group inside. Himchan is in nothing but robes, slippers, and black silk boxers, and his cheeks are rosy from drink. His black hair is smoothed back from his forehead in a coif. The casual luxury he presents puts Hoseok immediately at ease. Himchan's smile takes up his whole face. “Join us for dinner.”

“Our luggage,” Hoseok begins, as Minhyuk and Kihyun step forward slightly, shouldering their bags.

“Staff will take them up,” Himchan says dismissively. He gestures for Kihyun and Minhyuk to set down their bags, and they do. “Now, come. Dinner. Drinks. The train from New Seoul is exhausting, I know.”

Hoseok looks back at Minhyuk and Kihyun as they follow Himchan. The two pets have huddled close together now as they take in the grandeur of the mansion. A large, colorful painting of the ocean hangs against one wall, and they both pause to examine it as they pass.

“My pet,” Himchan says. “He’s quite the artist.”

“It’s lovely,” Minhyuk says, still rubbing sleep from his eyes. 

“I know. Don’t tell him that, though,” Himchan says. The arched doorway they step through leads to a library. They go to the right through another doorway to a parlor, where staff are in the midst of decorating for the party, draping fabric over tables and polishing glasses. “He’ll get an even bigger head.”

Kihyun’s eyes are wide like he’s trying to absorb everything through them. When he meets Hoseok’s gaze he trots forward, hand outstretched, and Hoseok takes it. “I feel like I’ll get lost in here,” Kihyun whispers under his breath.

Hoseok grins, holding Kihyun’s hand tight and feeling like his chest could explode just looking at him. “I’ll just have to find you, then.”

The dining room is through the next door, and it is alive with a small group of people. Himchan has set up a buffet of food on one side of the long room, pushing what had obviously been the dining table to the windows to make space for smaller tables that people could stand around for mingling in the center. Near the buffet is another table backed by two staff handing out glasses of wine to those waiting, even to pets. 

“Get some food,” Himchan says, pointing to the buffet. “And drink. I was just about to explain tomorrow to everyone here.”

He nearly trips over his robes as he walks away, receiving a few pats on the back from people in the room as he makes his way to the dining table.

“Is he always like that?” Minhyuk asks Hoseok, though he’s eyeing the buffet already.

Hoseok nods with a sigh. “Almost. He likes to make sure people are fed and cared for.”

Hoseok almost doesn’t hear Kihyun say, “Like you,” but it’s Kihyun who pretends he didn’t say anything, who takes Minhyuk’s hand with his other and pulls them both over to where the food is waiting for them.

When they have plates full of rice and side dishes and meat, Minhyuk and Kihyun find a table for them to occupy as Hoseok grabs wine for them. He doesn’t like to encourage his pets to drink, but this feels like a special occasion after all. He returns with the glasses to find Minhyuk already deep in conversation with another pet standing at the table, Kihyun quietly picking at his food.

“We’re from New Seoul,” Minhyuk is saying. “Blue Moon. Have you heard of it? Master Hyunwoo and Master Hoseok run it. I’m actually quite new, but it’s been great so far. I was at a place near City Hall, before.”

“I’ve never been to New Seoul,” the other pet says. His skin is a golden, nutty brown, kissed by the sun, and his voice is deep and smooth. The collar he’s wearing is a rich and vibrant red, and dripping in diamonds. “I’ve lived in Busan all my life.”

“It’s different here, isn’t it?” Minhyuk asks.

The other pet smiles, tilting his head cutely. “It is,” is all he says. Hoseok places the three glasses of wine on the table, and the pet nods to him. “Excuse me,” he says politely, leaving them.

“Making friends, Minhyuk-ah?” Hoseok asks.

Minhyuk nudges Kihyun with his shoulder, and Kihyun scowls at him. “One of us should.”

“You be social,” Kihyun sniffs. “I’m the pretty one, anyway.”

Minhyuk laughs, and the corners of Kihyun’s lips start to twitch upwards. Hoseok finds himself grinning, watching them both. He wants them to smile, he wants them to laugh. He wants to gather them into his arms and shield them from the world. It’s what Hyunwoo had seen in him, from the very first day. Hoseok had been a pet for only a short time before he’d met Hyunwoo, before Hyunwoo had turned his world upside down with a sentence.

“You’re not a good pet, Hoseok,” Hyunwoo had said, in that blunt way of his. Hoseok’s heart had plummeted to his stomach, but then Hyunwoo continued: “I see the way you care for the others in this House. You want to protect them.”

He’d been right, of course. Hyunwoo usually is.

At the head of the room, Himchan clears his throat. He climbs on top of the dining room table. The pet Minhyuk had been talking to before hovers by his feet, gazing up at Himchan. The room starts to quiet. Himchan clears his throat again, and the room falls silent, the eyes of about thirty or so people on Himchan.

“Thank you all for coming,” Himchan says. “I know it’s not an easy trip to make for all. But tomorrow’s fundraiser couldn’t happen without you.” He pauses, smirking. “Well, it probably could. It just wouldn’t be very successful.” Laughter sprinkles through the people in the room. “Guests will be arriving tomorrow. Pets, you’re expected to mingle with them. In the parlor. Out back. In the pool. Make them feel comfortable here. Mostly so they’ll spend lots of money on the auction items. The biggest auction item is a weekend trip to New Tokyo with reservations at a top restaurant, so be sure to talk that up. Staff will also help serve food and drinks during the party. You may negotiate with guests to offer your private services, though as written in the contract, 10% of the profit will come to me. Any questions?”

There are none. Himchan nods and says as he’s stepping down, “Be ready tomorrow by five o’clock. I’m going to bed; I’m getting too--” the rest is lost in his grumbling. The pet receives Himchan and they laugh as they bump noses, staying close as the pet ties up Himchan’s robe for him. Hoseok watches as Himchan places a tender kiss on the pet’s cheek. They leave the room together, hand in hand.

“His name was Daehyun,” Minhyuk says. 

Hoseok blinks, turning back to Kihyun and Minhyuk.

“I didn’t realize he was Himchan’s,” Minhyuk says with a wistful sigh.

.

They are shown their rooms. Hoseok had told Himchan that he was fine with sharing, though he needn’t have bothered; the mansion has enough bedrooms and guest spaces for almost every visitor to have their own surface to sleep on. Still, he’s glad he told Himchan he was fine with sharing, because Himchan has placed them all together in a suite with its own bathroom and a terrace you can walk out onto through double doors. There’s a large bed and a chaise sofa. Minhyuk wastes no time running to the bed and jumping on top of it, landing face down in the pillows.

“It’s like clouds,” he says, kicking his feet. He’d had two glasses of wine. Hoseok closes the door behind them.

Kihyun follows, slower, before attacking. He climbs on top of Minhyuk and pokes his sides viciously, tickling him with no mercy. Minhyuk yelps and laughs and bucks underneath him, and they both end up collapsing to the side, giggling. “That was mean,” Minhyuk says, slightly breathless and pouting.

“You’re too easy of a target.”

“I’ll show you easy,” Minhyuk says, and then they’re at it again, rolling over each other in the bed and laughing. 

Hoseok’s chest tightens and releases. He sighs, appreciating Kihyun’s laughter. The younger didn’t used to be so quick to laugh, more cautious and sarcastic than most. After what happened when Minhyuk first came to Blue Moon, when Hoseok and Hyunwoo had spoken to Kihyun about opening up, there had been a shift.

First, between Kihyun and Minhyuk. The two grew close so quickly Hoseok couldn’t even begin to say how it happened. The day before Kihyun had been eyeing Minhyuk with distrust and suspicion and the next they were play fighting constantly, yapping at each other’s heels. Hoseok often found the two together in the middle of the day, napping together, Minhyuk curled around Kihyun’s smaller form. 

Hoseok attributes how close the two pets became mostly to Minhyuk. He could imagine Minhyuk approaching Kihyun constantly in that open way of his, asking after him, prodding him to play. Kihyun just needed that extra push.

He still remembers how guilty he’d felt over the cut and bruise on Kihyun’s cheek from a now-blacklisted guest. Hoseok felt like  _ he’d _ put it there. The few days he’d spent orienting Minhyuk to his new home meant he’d also spent less time with Kihyun, who was new as well. And he hadn’t asked Hyunwoo for his advice then, how to balance the two, thinking everything would be fine. A bit of misplaced pride went into it, too, and his confusion around how Kihyun made him feel. 

Hoseok had always felt protective of the pets they brought into Blue Moon. But Kihyun was -- is -- different. Since the very first day, it’s as though Kihyun struck a match inside of Hoseok’s chest, and now Hoseok is smoldering. Kihyun makes him feel like he’s fire, ignites a passion inside of him he thought he’d thrown away when Hyunwoo started to train him. 

So maybe the feelings and the pride and the guilt are what really kept him away, Hoseok thinks, chewing on his bottom lip. He should talk to Hyunwoo soon.

“Master Hoseok,” he hears Minhyuk whine, “Kihyunnie is smothering me!”

The image of Kihyun once again straddling Minhyuk and attempting to press a soft pillow over Minhyuk’s face draws Hoseok out of his memories.

“Kihyunnie,” Hoseok says, warning in his tone. “Play nice.”

“Aw,” Kihyun says. “Where’s the fun in that?”

Hoseok grins, walking towards the bed slowly. He unbuttons his top and shrugs it from his shoulders, and then he pulls his undershirt off over his head. He lets both drop to the floor. Kihyun is watching him, his tongue darting out to lick his lips. As though magnetized, he crawls off of Minhyuk and to the edge of the bed before sitting back on his ankles, waiting.

Kihyun leans forward when Hoseok reaches the bed, his lips touching the skin above Hoseok’s nipple. Hoseok hums in appreciation, cradling the back of Kihyun’s head as Kihyun licks and sucks, taking Hoseok’s nipple into his mouth as he attempts to work Hoseok’s pants open.

“Not yet, Kihyun,” Hoseok says softly, and Kihyun whines around his kiss, but then Hoseok is pushing him back onto the bed and undressing him. Minhyuk helps, and then he undresses as well. “Minhyuk-ah, you and Kihyunnie are so close these days. Have you tasted him yet?”

Minhyuk quiets during the build up to sex and during the act itself. It’s amazing, the change that overtakes him, suddenly much more demure and eager to please. He shakes his head, his eyes wide.

“Would you like to?” Hoseok asks.

Minhyuk nods, his eyes on Kihyun now.

“Kihyunnie, would you like that?” Hoseok asks, kissing Kihyun’s shoulder and biting gently. Kihyun arches against him and sighs.

“Yes, please.”

“So polite,” Hoseok teases, biting him again. “Go on, then.”

They kiss tentatively at first, leaning towards each other on their knees and unsure how the other moves. It’s Kihyun who pushes first, kissing deeper with a gasp and climbing into Minhyuk’s lap, straddling him and grinding against him. Minhyuk moans, and Hoseok sees they are both getting hard. 

“Good boys,” Hoseok says to them both, sliding off the bed to rummage in the side table for lube and condoms. He finds both and returns, stepping out of his pants and briefs before putting a knee on the bed.

Kihyun gasps when Hoseok trails a finger slick with cold lube from his perineum to his hole, clutching Minhyuk tightly. “Shhh,” Hoseok coaxes, kissing Kihyun’s shoulder again. He eases them both down so that Minhyuk is lying flat on his back with Kihyun still straddling him, their dicks trapped between their bellies. Hoseok lies on his side, playing with Kihyun’s ass, kneading and squeezing the muscle to see all the expressions on Kihyun’s face. Like this, he can kiss Kihyun and Minhyuk both while his fingers drip lube over Kihyun’s hole.

Minhyuk rolls his hips up, against Kihyun, creating much-needed friction between their bodies. His hands on Kihyun’s hips grip him tight, pulling him as close as possible.

“That feels good,” Kihyun sighs against Hoseok’s mouth, eyes glazed over. Hoseok pushes a finger inside of Kihyun and swallows the moan that escapes Kihyun’s mouth.

“Who do you want to come first, Kihyunnie?” Hoseok asks, pumping his finger in and out. “Me or Minhyuk-ah?” Kihyun bites his lips, thinking about his answer. “Or you?” Hoseok continues, and he eases in another finger. 

Kihyun’s whole body shakes around it, and Minhyuk groans underneath him. “I don’t know,” Kihyun says, pushing back against Hoseok’s fingers.

“I think I’ll let Minhyuk-ah come first,” Hoseok says. “Help him, won’t you?”

Kihyun nods. He fucks himself on Hoseok’s fingers. Two, and then three. The movement makes Minhyuk buck and groan and curse, his orgasm building slowly from the friction. Finally, Kihyun squeezes his hand between their bodies, and Hoseok knows when he takes hold of Minhyuk by Minhyuk’s aborted shout. He comes moments later, his chest heaving, sweat glistening at his forehead and temples. 

Hoseok takes out his fingers. Kihyun turns to him to whine but doesn’t manage to say anything before Hoseok is pulling him off of Minhyuk and positioning him on his hands and knees, his face pressed against Minhyuk’s belly.

Kihyun is slick and hot and  _ perfect _ when Hoseok slides into him. He takes Hoseok so well, each time. It is only a moment to adjust, and then Hoseok is fucking into Kihyun with quick snaps of his hips, his fingers digging into Kihyun’s sides. Kihyun moans into Minhyuk’s skin as Minhyuk runs his fingers through Kihyun’s hair, still coming down from his orgasm.

“So perfect,” Hoseok huffs, the heat building in his lower abdomen and balls. Kihyun clenches around him and swivels his hips and then he screams, and Hoseok knows he’s found that sensitive bundle of nerves inside of him.

“Harder,” Kihyun pleads. “Harder, please, there! There, there--”

Kihyun tightens around him and Hoseok sees white, his orgasm hitting him suddenly, his ears ringing, Kihyun’s hole like it formed around him. His hips stutter. Kihyun is still screaming, still in the throes of his own climax, when Hoseok comes down, his release dripping down the backs of Kihyun’s thighs.

When he pulls out Kihyun’s hole is red and glistening. He touches it with two fingers and pushes cum back inside. Kihyun’s moan ends in a sob.

Hoseok collapses beside them both, panting. He drapes a heavy arm over Kihyun’s side and pulls him over to kiss him, messy and wonderful. Kihyun lays over him so that Hoseok can reach Minhyuk on his other side, and Minhyuk returns the kiss sleepily. Hoseok chuckles, and Kihyun winds his arms around Hoseok’s neck.

“He’s already passed out,” Hoseok says. “Minhyuk-ah.” Minhyuk stirs, blinking his eyes open. “Go wash up and then come back to bed.”

Minhyuk nods, following the command slowly. Hoseok hears the sound of water running in the shower a few moments later, and steam begins to rise from the crack in the door to the bathroom. 

Kihyun is limp on top of Hoseok, sticky, his eyeliner running a bit from stray tears. Hoseok brushes them away with his thumb. “Beautiful,” he says, loving the way Kihyun still flushes after so many times hearing it from him. Kihyun turns away, laying his cheek on Hoseok’s chest, warm. “What are you thinking, pet?”

It had become a habit for them, after the incident, for Hoseok always to ask. He strokes clean fingers through Kihyun’s hair, waiting for his response.

Finally, Kihyun sighs. He says, “The pet from earlier. Daehyun.” He pauses, deliberate with his words. “He looked really happy.”

Hoseok hums. “He did, didn’t he? Himchan must take good care of him.”

“It’s more than that,” Kihyun continues quietly. “He was--” He raises his face, his eyes dark and searching. There’s a line forming across the bridge of his nose as he thinks.

“He was what?”

“Loved,” Kihyun says. Then, more quietly as if to himself, again. “He was loved.”

Air leaves Hoseok’s lungs suddenly. He feels frozen and caught as Kihyun’s eyes search him for an answer Hoseok doesn’t yet know how to give. 

Just when Hoseok thinks he won’t be able to breathe ever again, Kihyun ducks his eyes and slides from Hoseok’s body and off the bed. “I’m going to join Minhyuk,” he says quietly. 

Hoseok doesn’t move from the bed for a long time.

.

The party brings a crowd from all over the country, gentlemen and ladies with money lining their pockets. All of them, Himchan greets personally, his pet Daehyun smiling and waiting at his side. Kihyun and Minhyuk are stationed out back and by the pool, and this makes it easy for Hoseok to linger at the fringes, drink in hand, monitoring them both from his chair near the edge of the pool. 

It is designed to look like a grotto, a rock formation to one side providing a hidden nook inside and cover from the overhanging rock on the other. A small bar has been set up on the patio. The sun is setting, and the dying light reflects off the pool’s waters, throwing splashes of color onto the pebbled surface. Torches are lit around the property, dispensing both heat and more light. Hoseok watches as Kihyun and Minhyuk mix with the crowd growing around the water, the pets easily discernible from the rest because of the colorful sarongs around their waists.

He watches as Kihyun takes a guest by the hand and guides her to the bar, getting her a drink. He watches as Kihyun takes another guest by the elbow and dances with him, hips moving in serpentine patterns, the sarong around his waist fluttering. Hoseok sips his drink, hitting ice. He shakes it to dislodge some of the frozen pieces but doesn’t try to drink it again.  

As the guests mill about and talk, one comes to sit beside him, groaning a bit as he settles into the low seat.

“I’m no good at these things,” the guest says. His voice is almost too low to hear. Hoseok glances at him. He has a serious face, dark shadows under his eyes, a tapered chin. He turns to Hoseok and says, “Himchan is doing me a great favor.”

“This fundraiser is for you?” Hoseok asks.

“Didn’t he say?” The stranger’s brows dip.

“He mentioned a political bent,” Hoseok offers. “He was paying a lot.”

“I’m running for governor of New Seoul,” the stranger says. He puts his hand out to shake, and Hoseok shakes it. He has a firm grip, and a steady gaze. “I’m Bang Yongguk.”

“Shin Hoseok.”

Yongguk sits back in the seat and sighs, swirling his drink in his hand. He doesn’t seem to want to continue speaking, but now Hoseok is curious.

“Shouldn’t you be out there talking about yourself?”

“Oh no,” Yongguk says. “I hate doing that. Himchan does it just fine for me.”

“What’s your platform?”

“Better jobs,” Yongguk lists, “equal pay and fair wages. That sort of thing.”

“Doesn’t seem like you really want this,” Hoseok says.

Yongguk doesn’t say anything. He sits up a little straighter and points at the crowd. Hoseok follows his finger and sees Kihyun at the end of the it, dancing with another guest. “That one is yours?”

“Our house is called Blue Moon,” Hoseok answers. “Minhyuk is one of our pets, too -- the one with white hair.”

Yongguk shakes his head. “No. I mean, is he yours? The way you look at him; it’s different. Special.”

“It’s not,” Hoseok insists immediately, unsure why denial is his first reaction. 

Yongguk smiles, and it’s a bitter, sympathetic one. “Pets are beautiful,” he says. “So giving of themselves. And what do they get in return? Something that is not quite love. A life of bondage. Clipped wings. It’s such a tragedy.”

Hoseok is quiet. He looks at Kihyun, dancing with another guest, flirting. Would he be the same, had he not been thrown into this life? Kihyun never talks about his past, even when Hoseok presses, clamming up and giving him the cold shoulder for hours until he can bear it no longer. Hoseok himself had been sold when he was thirteen so that his family could afford a roof over their heads for a few more months. He hasn’t looked for them since.

“I’m sorry,” Yongguk says after another long moment. “I always get like this when I drink.”

Hoseok stands, leaving his empty glass on the arm of his seat. He can’t stay still any longer. He has all this excess energy in his fingertips, and he needs to do something. “Excuse me,” he says to Yongguk, who nods and watches him leave. Hoseok strides down the steps from the pool to the beach, where the tide is coming in. He paces on wet sand, the salty air chilling him slightly now that he’s away from the light and warmth of the party. He needs time to think, to get his thoughts in order.

.

When he returns, the guests have thinned. He spots Minhyuk by the bar, flirting with a guest, putting a flower in her hair. 

“Minhyuk-ah,” Hoseok calls as he nears, still shaking sand from his shoes. “Where’s Kihyun?”

“Himchan just finished the auction,” Minhyuk says, “so a lot of guests went home. I think I saw Kihyun go upstairs.” 

“To our room?” Hoseok asks, but he’s already walking.

“I think!” Minhyuk calls after him.

Hoseok walks quickly, anxious. Kihyun wouldn’t have gone upstairs on his own, which means he went upstairs with a guest. Hoseok hadn’t been here to negotiate, so what kinds of services could Kihyun have offered? He should have stayed. He’d never made so many mistakes with Hyungwon, when Hyunwoo was watching over them both, but Kihyun has proven himself to be unpredictable. 

When he reaches the room they are staying in, a man is just walking out of it. He fiddles with the waistband of his pants before seeing Hoseok and grinning, giving a jovial wave as he leaves. Hoseok stifles the urge to give him a very rude gesture, knowing it would be uncalled for in such circumstances. Instead, he knocks on the door and pushes his way inside.

Kihyun is there, naked but unharmed, his cheeks flushed, sprawled on the chaise and not the bed, which is still perfectly made from this morning. He gasps when Hoseok enters. “Master…”

“What did you do?” Hoseok asks. 

Kihyun says quickly, defensively, “He paid.”

Hoseok shakes his head, unable to keep the disappointment from his voice when he speaks again. “No, Kihyunnie. What did you do?”

Kihyun sits up slowly. He picks up his sarong on the floor beside the chaise and lays it over his lap, hands coming together over his thighs, shrinking as Hoseok walks toward him. “I thought you’d be pleased,” Kihyun says in a very small voice, looking down at his lap, at his fidgeting fingers. “He paid. He just wanted me to suck him. So I did.”

“Did anything else happen?”

“No,” Kihyun says, sniffling wetly. 

“Kihyunnie, baby,” Hoseok says softly when he reaches him, hooking his finger under Kihyun’s chin to raise his eyes. “Look at me.”

Kihyun does, unable to look anywhere else. “I’m sorry,” he says. “I’m always disappointing you.”

“That’s not true,” Hoseok whispers, feeling his own eyes start to burn. “That’s not true, baby. I’m happy you’re not hurt. I just -- that can’t happen again, okay? I set up the clients. Or Master Hyunwoo. If neither of us are around, forget it, okay? It’s -- it’s to keep you safe.”

Kihyun nods, and Hoseok smiles. He just wants to keep Kihyun safe. For him to be happy. For him to feel loved.

Kihyun is light when Hoseok carries him to the bed. The doors to the terrace are open, and the rhythmic crashing of waves provides a peaceful soundtrack to the night. Hoseok explores Kihyun’s body slowly, savoring him, committing to memory all his little noises of pleasure.

.

Minhyuk wakes him the next morning with a kiss to his forehead and bright, sunshine smile on his face. The window is still open, the waves still crashing, and Hoseok imagines himself lifted upon them, floating without constraints and taking Kihyun with him. Minhyuk taps him on the nose, urging him awake. Hoseok squints against the light. “What?” he asks bluntly.

Minhyuk whispers, pouting, “You slept together without me.”

Hoseok grumbles and slaps an arm around Minhyuk’s waist as recompense. “I could go right now with you, if you want.”

“Nah,” Minhyuk says. “I’m good.” He wriggles out of Hoseok’s hold and off the bed, walking toward the bathroom. “Himchan said we should visit the beach before we go. He has breakfast and stuff downstairs.”

“Do you want to go?” he asks from the bed.

“I want to go with Kihyunnie,” Minhyuk singsongs. 

Hoseok sighs, rolling over to wake Kihyun up. He can’t help but kiss his sleeping face, and then he’s kissing him all over, and Kihyun is squirming and trying to bat at whatever he thinks is attacking him with soft kisses. Hoseok laughs. “Wake up, baby,” he says, settling for one last kiss on Kihyun’s nose.

In response, Kihyun rolls closer and snuggles against Hoseok’s chest, stubbornly asleep.

“Minhyuk-ah wants to go to the beach with you,” Hoseok says. 

“It’s too cold to go in the water,” Kihyun mumbles.

“We came all the way here, Kihyunnie,” Hoseok says. “The least we should do is look at it.”

When Kihyun finally rouses they get ready together, and head downstairs for a quick bite, meeting Himchan, Daehyun, and Yongguk in the process. They all head out to the patio together, taking the steps by the pool down to the sand. Kihyun brings a plate of food with him to the beach, looking affronted in his pink sweater and jeans, shaking his knees to ward off the chill. Minhyuk, in a sweater and beanie, sprints toward the ocean and laughs when the waves chase him back. Himchan and Daehyun stroll, arm in arm, comfortable, like they’ve done this a million times before. From a distance, it almost looks like Daehyun isn’t wearing a collar.

It is beautiful, a gray morning, the water like slate against a silver sky. Other guests and staff slowly appear from the mansion, enjoying the beach or saying their goodbyes. Hoseok hangs back with Kihyun has he finishes the food on his plate and then encourages him to join Minhyuk in whatever game Minhyuk has invented to avoid the waves. 

Yongguk stands beside Hoseok, his stance almost militaristic, feet shoulder-width apart and hands clasped behind his back. He looks imposing now, in all black, his coat long and with a stiff, high collar. “Last night I asked if he was yours,” he says quietly. “I should have asked: Do you _want_ him to be yours?” 

Hoseok watches Minhyuk and Kihyun play and feels soft like a favorite pillow, light like a feather. Somehow, everything feels brighter than the grey sky should allow. The sea makes its own rules, makes everything small, and precious. Kihyun’s laughter rings out across the sand and warms him from the inside out.

“No,” Hoseok says. “I want him to be free.”

.

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading. comments are appreciated <3
> 
> come find me on twitter @andnowforyaya
> 
> also, i might be doing nanowrimo next month (november), which will put all fic on hiatus! but i'll be back. thanks for your patience.


End file.
